Milford Fire Department Members Receive EMS Award

MILFORD, CT – As Emergency Services Week continues, May 21 through May 27, Milford Fire Department held the annual EMS Awards on Tuesday, May 23.

Adam Hansen, Milford Fire Department PIO, said the 2023 Annual EMS was held at the Milford Fire Department Headquarters.

“The ceremony was held to present awards to members of the Milford Fire Department, Milford Public Safety Dispatchers, Nelson Ambulance and several Milford Hospital Staff,” Hansen stated.

The awards were presented by several doctors, nurses, EMS coordinators, and other hospital-based health professionals.

Milford Hospital Emergency Nurse Shaileen Morton received this year’s new award, the EMS Partner of the Year Award. The award is given to an individual who works alongside EMS and goes above and beyond to support prehospital goals.

Hansen said the following were the awardees in the 2023 Annual EMS Awards:

• MFD members Mathew Schumann, Brinton Epright, Chad Cameron, Andrew Komoriski and Dan Talaniec received the award for responding to a 73-year-old male who was experiencing a choking emergency, where the crews needed to perform advanced airway management, clear the airway, and successfully resuscitated the patient and returned pulses.
• Nelson Ambulance Paramedic Jenny Martinez and EMT Jason Helms for responding to a call where a patient was experiencing a septic emergency resulting in a life-threatening condition.
• MFD members Luke Kyer, Maureen Hawkins, Kyle Ferri, Arthur Murphy, Paul Buda Jr., Robert Appuzzo, Robert Buch, Kyle Wengenroth, and Ryan LaGuardia for responding to a cardiac arrest at a local department store. The patient had multiple preexisting conditions making resuscitation efforts even more complicated. Finally, the patient was treated with Advanced Cardiac Life Support Measures, and crews could resuscitate the patient.
• MFD members Mathew Schumann, Kristin Stuart, Christoper Waiksnoris, Thomas Mangan, Kyle Wengenroth, Kyle Brotherton, Brian Carpenter, Anthony Vitale, Jeffrey Luciano, and Stephen Rabel for treating a patient suffering from extensive traumatic injuries and multi/system trauma. Their care included but was not limited to bilateral tourniquets on the extremities, advanced airway management, rapid extrication from under a train, and management of hypovolemic shock. Their actions in providing lifesaving care gave the patient the best chance of survival.
• Milford Public Safety Dispatchers Ryan Ford, Patricia Clemens, and Lannita Walker for their critical role in ensuring the appropriate resources are dispatched and for providing prearrival instructions, including but not limited to CPR.

Hansen said MPS was recognized for its excellence in cardiovascular care.

“In the last three months, they have had 10 successful STEMI Activations (Heart Attack Activations) with appropriate early recognition, activation, and interventions allowing the hospital cardiology team of experts to then continue with their exceptional care leading to positive patient outcomes. 100 percent of the patients were discharged,” he said.

Hansen said the Milford Fire Department’s cardiac arrest Return of Spontaneous Circulation or pulse rate on transported patients is 47 percent, significantly higher than the 2022 national average.

“Their patient’s survival to hospital admission rate is 39 percent which is well above the 2022 national average of 24 percent,” he said. “Additionally, they are working to ensure they retain their Heart Safe Community designation by meeting and exceeding their commitments to CPR training and AED accessibility in the community.”